Cowboys' Scandrick fails drug test; agent spreads blame

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick has been suspended for four games for failing a drug test. (Anne Cusack, Los Angeles Times)

Dallas Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick said Tuesday that he will be suspended the first four games of the 2014 season for a failed drug test.

Owner Jerry Jones broke the news to media Monday when he said Scandrick would be banned by the league.

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"I would like to apologize to my children, my family, the Jones Family, my coaches, my teammates and my fans," Scandrick said in a news release early Tuesday. "Failing a drug test is far out of my character, and although I never knowingly took a performance enhancing drug/banned stimulant while on vacation in Mexico, I take full responsibility for what goes in my body and more importantly for the embarrassment of a failed drug test. It's my goal by issuing this statement to clear my name and more importantly to be judged by what happens to me in the future. I hope that my family, my Cowboys football family and all my fans can forgive me for this situation. I look forward to a successful 2014 season."

Scandrick started 15 of 16 games for the Cowboys last season. He had 64 tackles, two interceptions and a forced fumble.

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The absence of Scandrick adds to the problems facing the Cowboys, who were poor on defense last season and have several defensive starters sidelined with injuries.

According to his agent, Ron Slavin, the absence of HGH regulation contributed to Scandrick's failed test.

"I do not excuse Orlando having tested positive for a banned stimulant," Slavin said in a statement Tuesday. "The current rules are what they are, and a player is responsible for what is in his body. However, I would like it known that it is my understanding that if the current proposed agreement related to HGH testing would have already been instituted, a very significant percentage of the players receiving 'PED' suspensions since the new CBA took effect would not have been suspended. Instead, these players, under the proposed new policy, would have been subjected to the Substance Abuse Policy and Program. More than 80 missed games, millions of dollars in fines and bonus repayments have been issued because the NFLPA and NFL cannot come to an agreement. The only people who are losing in this standoff are the players and fans."

The NFLPA claims the hold up in the agreement is the league's unwillingness to make concessions on independent appeals arbitration. Per terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, commissioner Roger Goodell has authority to determine suspensions, including appeals.